Putting On Socks

I have recently been reminded  that we truly are creatures of habit. We like that which is familiar and that which causes less friction and less problems. I noticed that every morning it's the same routine, day after day. Lay in bed till alarm clock goes off, turn it off, roll over and pray for my family and the day ahead, get out of bed get that first cup of coffee with my bible in hand, then the news on to see what happened in the world, shave, gym, back home, shower, dress, eat, off to work. Every day the same thing, over and over and over and over and ... I am sure you get the picture. Well, this morning something or someone said - DO IT DIFFERENT! I DID and I LOVED IT!

This morning I got out of bed, didn't drink coffee, went for a jog instead of hitting the gym. Wow! It was a little strange, but it was good! As a matter of fact it was real good! I enjoyed my jog and I got to see the beauty of the fog as it hovered just above the pond. I got to listen to the unusual hum of the 'red-eyed locusts' as they do whatever it is they do. As I returned refreshed, I continued to do things a little different. Such as ... instead of putting my right sock on, then my left, then my right shoe, then my left. I started with my left foot. To be honest, that really was strange for me, but I did it!

OK, I can hear it now ... WHY? WHY would I do that? Why even discuss it? Well, it hit me early this morning in my quiet time before I even got out of bed- so many of us go through life just going through the motions, doing the same thing every day, over and over and over again, never deviating a bit. Then I was hit again much harder! How many believers get stuck in religion, church life, and just a big ole religious rut all because they refuse to change. Sure, I understand that change is not fun for most (I actually like change most of the time!), it's not easy (thinking back to my socks and shoes), and it's definitely not popular (especially in traditional churches). One thing for sure is that while changes are not permanent, change is (Geddy Lee of Rush). Even so, because so many refuse to embrace change and take hold of something new, believers and churches all over America have become stagnant in their faith and are dying in the deathbed of routine. It's a sad reality.

Certainly Scripture tells us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever and that God does not change. Thank God that He doesn't change, but that does not in any way imply that He does not do 'new' things do things differently than before. Neither does it imply that we reject change. When was the last time you saw a lamb sacrificed or blood wiped on the doorposts? You haven't. Why??? Because God chose to do a NEW thing! He chose to do something different! Can you see Jesus bringing it up in a deacons meeting or a church business meeting to get their approval of feeding the 5000 or healing blind man? I can just hear it? "Are we sure this is what we want to do? I mean we have never done this before." or "Is it going to cost anything?" Or how about a favorite of mine; "What do the by-laws say?" AAAAGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! You may laugh, but this happens all the time because churches are filled with people who refuse to do something new or different and who refuse to even consider change.

Do you get the picture? So many believers get plugged into a church and get caught up in a religious routine and DIE! That's right! They DIE!!! Do we even realize that becoming a member of a church is not the goal? How many believers miss God all because they refuse to embrace newness and change? How many churches are dead and just filling up an acre of land all because they refuse to break out of the religious junk called tradition? More serious than that. How many lost people will never embrace Jesus because His children refuse to step out of their cozy comfort zone of routine church life and tell them about Him? This happens all the time all because we are creatures of habit and we buy in to the lie of settling into routine church life that never embraces real life. I have wondered about those who refuse to change when it plainly states in Scripture that the sanctification process is God 'changing' us into the likeness of His Son. Hmmm...! While change is not always good (I defer to our current political state), God calls us to be people who embrace newness of life that comes from intimacy with Him and that newness obviously requires change.

Start today, try something new even if it is to just get out of a cozy routine of putting your right sock on first. God is the same, yet He is always calling us to change and embrace newness of life. O yea!

Have We Forgotten What It Feels Like?

Have we forgotten the warm feeling of seeing a baby sleeping?


Have we forgotten the comfort we felt when we used to sit in our parents lap?

Have we forgotten the excitement of going to see grandparents?

Have we forgotten the thrill of jumping into a lake, pond, or river for the first time?

Have we forgotten the fun of playing hide-n-go-seek?

Have we forgotten the pleasure of running and playing in the yard?

Have we forgotten the satisfaction of a cool drink from the water hose on a hot day?

Have we forgotten the anticipation of our own birthday party or Christmas morning?

Have we forgotten the security of being tucked into bed by mom and dad?

Have we forgotten how our heart used to jump when we held hands with someone special for the first time?

Have we forgotten the butterflies when we proposed or was proposed to?

Have we forgotten the flood of 'YES!' when she said 'YES'!

Have we forgotten the sadness the first night away from our lover?

Have we forgotten the ecstasy we felt when we reunited afterwards?

Have we forgotten the love that overwhelmed us when first laid eyes on our children?

Have we forgotten the 'heaven' we felt when we first held our children?

Have we forgotten that nothing else matter when we were wrapped in the arms of our lover?

Have we forgotten the warm 'fuzzies' we felt when our lover just smiled at us?

Have we forgotten the warmth of an embrace from a loved one when the world was cold?

Have we forgotten the sweetness of sitting with our lover in silence knowing that all is well?

Have we forgotten the elation when our child crawled up in our lap and said "I love you so much."?

Have we forgotten the delight we get when our kids look into our eyes and smile at us?

Have we forgotten the little pieces of happiness we feel when the entire family sits down to a meal?

Have we forgotten the enjoyment of holding our loved ones and feeling their heart beat against our chest?

Have we forgotten the feeling when we really believed love was forever?

Have we forgotten how to feel altogether?

I hope not. If so, let's learn to feel once again and forever!

My Thoughts: One Problem With Christian Men

When it comes to observations, I have many. I figured I would start writing down some and here is one that has been on my mind for a while now.


I find it odd that when it comes to Christian men, it seems that the world's impression of them being weak, spineless, and judgmental men for many is true. Let me explain. Paul Coughlin, the author of No More Christian Nice Guy says "Christian men are expected to be mild and amiable, though Jesus was far from mild and amiable. They aren’t expected to show much emotion either, especially passion, since the "ideal" Christian man is primarily stoic." This is exactly what many believe Christian men should be like and unfortunately many actually are like. This leads to an unhealthy tension for those who want to follow Christ or have just considered becoming a Christian.

For Christian men this undue tension between exhibiting strength and being Christ-like is an unfortunate constant. This should not be. For the reason mentioned above, so many equate being strong to being wrong. They equate toughness and boldness to badness and rebellion. For many, being tough and bold is bad and definitely not something a Christian man should be. This is just crazy! Our culture, which over the past 3 decades has done all it can to 'feminize' and 'de-masculinize' men and has produced a generation of spineless, pathetic, self-centered men who don't have a clue what being a man is all about. This demasculinization unfortunately crept its way into the church , found a huge reception, and now has basically taken over. Man, who was created in the image of a Warrior God has bought into the lie and as a result been hindered from becoming the man he was created to be. He's been trained instead to be nice and to reject any and all 'aggressiveness' and 'boldness' because it's just not 'Christian'. Instead of promoting and encouraging men to become warriors and champions for Christ and for their wives and families, Christian men have been taught to be spineless, emotionless wimps! I agree that in our world today aggressiveness and boldness is not 'Christian', but it certainly is Christ-like! Today's Christian man is not what God intended when He created man! God created man to be strong, vivacious, and passionate. He created man to take a stand for righteousness, to fight for it, and give his life for it if need be but it seems that there is an overabundance of just the opposite in our world and especially in our churches.

This tension leads to many problems for men when it comes to relationships and life in general. The fact of the matter is that man really does have this inborn desire to be strong, aggressive, and victorious. He has a God-given desire to show aggression, to conquer, and to win! When this desire is repressed, it causes problems. Aggression, if not allowed properly to flow, will manifest itself in destructive ways such as anger, irritability, and even rage. How many men mistreat their wives or children, yell and scream at children and co-workers, or just flat out irritable all the time? How many Christian men do this? Then there are those men who just don't really know what to do and simply check out emotionally. Teenage boys will find ways of releasing aggression through sports (which is great) or through negative ways such as fighting, rejecting authority, and unhealthy sexual relationships. Could it be this simple? I think so. I am not saying that all sinful aggressive acts of men should be blamed on this, but I would venture to say much of it could. Think about it. If a man is not allowed to express himself in the way he was created to, frustration will set in and will cause him to express himself in unhealthy ways. Christian men today are frustrated men because they don't know how to be the men God created them to be. Most don't have a clue what it is he is suppose to be! Most men are frustrated, unsure, and insecure.

Aggression is power. It's a force to be reckoned with and when that force is stifled, it will begin to buck and kick and seek to get out anyway it can. When man believes it is sinful to even have those 'wild' and 'warrior-like' passions, he will seek to squelch them out and 'resist' these evil urges. When he does all he can do to silence this inner 'sin' he finds that it's not really that easy. He finds that after his well intentioned efforts to restrain this 'sinful' aggressiveness, he still loses his temper ,blows up, or hangs his head in shame and eventually just gives in and gives up.

Now if he never overcomes this lie, man will become nothing more than a beaten down shell of a man. His spirit shattered, his will depleted, and his desire for adventure and excitement history! Churches are filled with men like this. For many, they will find a comfortable place of existence and accept mediocrity and lackadaisical Christianity while others will attempt to compensate by taking on roles of 'leadership' within the church. These spiritually impotent men who do find their way into leadership positions feel the urge to become the 'caretakers' of the 'things' of God and honestly believe that they are doing something for God by caring for 'the church'. Even though it is not based upon them being a man of God , they find some meaning and significance in life. This new role for these men produces a false sense of pride, also known as arrogance, ensnaring them in a system of such that is absolutely foreign to Scripture. This fabrication has hurt and actually destroyed many churches. Because these men are not qualified, nor are they spiritually mature enough, they become the blind leading the blind. What they call church now has become anything but 'church'. They take that which is spiritual and attempt to run it by 'unspiritual' means. Real spirituality is replaced by dead religion led by men who don't have a clue to the things of God. For instance, how many deacons honestly know what the 'mysteries of the faith' are? I know men who have served as deacons for years who cannot lead a lost person to Christ. Deacons, men who suppose to know the 'mysteries of the faith' who can't even tell someone how to be saved. This is an atrocity and yet our churches are filled with them!

Well intentioned yet spiritually impotent men become keepers of the crypt dedicating themselves to caring for a dead, or at the most, a dying institution void of all spiritual power and maturity. These men find themselves in roles in which they simply do not belong and out of ignorance and arrogance begin to run the church. They hide behind dead religion, domineering wives, and the very institution responsible for such. The only excitement these men experience is when they get caught up in arguing about and complaining about petty stuff revolving around institutional things, i.e. 'church stuff'. I have seen men who should be sharing the love of Jesus and the message of hope and salvation with others be overcome emotionally with the overwhelming need to call a meeting to discuss the silly, the absurd, and the ridiculous. I have seen grown men blow up in a 'business' meeting over the fact that the youth wanted to sell donuts to help raise money for camp. I have seen it where the church had to vote on whether or not it was OK to have an event to reach lost people. What?!!! I have seen grown men spew venomous hatred to staff over the length of Vacation Bible School or the volume of the song service. When a man will hide behind church by-laws and man-made traditions and neglect the hurting, lost, and dying, something is terribly wrong! Men so caught up in 'taking care of the church' have missed that which is really important. What a shame! What a horrible shame!

I honestly believe Satan's goal is to break a Christian man all the way down and then deceive him to believing that it is his responsibility to protect the institution of the church and all of its traditions. This will keep him from doing anything bold or outrageous for God! It will keep him spiritually paralyzed. Churches are filled with these men. They may be Christians, but they are lost men who have been overcome by the enemy and have failed to become the men God meant for them to become! It's a sad state! Instead of the 'church' embracing and encouraging men to be men, it has done just the opposite. Churches are filled with men who have never been validated, who have never embraced their calling to be men, and who promote the very same thing to others. May God open our eyes to see this lie and may we sharpen our swords (and our wits) and become the Warriors we were created to be! God set us free in Jesus not be religious eunuchs but to live life with passion and make a real difference in this world! Now that's real life!



Afterthought: I must mention that I know many godly men who serve in churches as deacons, elders, SS teachers, etc. who truly serve the people and minister to them according the Word of God and are real men of God!

The Enemy's Strategy: Keep ‘Em From Taking Bold Steps!

In my tenure as a disciple of Christ, I have had my ups and my downs. Some of the ups have been higher than high and some of the lows have been lower than low! Someone has said that following Jesus is like being on a roller coaster. Well, that analogy seems fitting until you have truly hit the lows in following Jesus. The lows on a roller coaster are extremely fun and exciting, but the lows I have experienced in following the Lord are not fun in any way. As a matter of fact they have been some of the darkest and most depressing times in my life. Being a Christian is easy. Following Jesus is brutal and definitely not for the faint at heart.
Let me explain by asking a question. "How many of us would walk through Wal-mart or the grocery store and say to everyone we meet; "Hi, how are you? I just want you to know I love Jesus. Hope you have a good day." Seriously! How many? Would you? Have you ever done anything like that? Most of us would have to say "no, I have never done that". I am wondering just how many would say; "that's just crazy I would never do that!"? Sure that is extreme with some folks, but it should not be something that we would 'never' do. The fact is that most Christians just would not do it because of the fear of 'what' others would think of them. Who wants to be considered a weirdo? Who wants to be thought of as a fanatic? Who wants to be labeled a "Jesus Freak"? I mean come on, I love Jesus but let's not get carried away.

OK, let's calm it down to just a light roar then. How many of us would simply just do what is right when we know it's right? I can hear all believers saying, "I would!". Of course we all would, wouldn't we? I am not so sure about that. I remember shortly after I got saved and boldly saying that I was going to tell everyone about Jesus. Then I ran into a popular young lady and reneged on my commitment. I felt the pressure and caved! I did not want to appear weird in the eyes of this pretty girl. Sure I was a young believer but still that haunts me to this day that I wimped out. What I find though after years of following Christ that there are those within the body of Christ who do the same thing today. Not just those who are young in the faith, but so many who have been saved for years, those who are seen as pillars in our churches; SS teachers, deacons, elders, and even preachers! For instance, how many times have you ever wanted to clap in church or raise a hand in worship or just sing out with enthusiasm yet held back from doing so because you didn't want to seem weird. Don't even think of going down to the altar to pray. People might think you did something wrong. I say; "WHAT"?! If we hold back in these things, we can rest assure we will never do anything bold for Christ. That's Satan goal! Paralyzed Saints who are satisfied with going to church yet never crossing that line and embracing boldness.

I went to seminary with guy who got saved and started living for Jesus. He was from a religious family who was from another Christian denomination. Because of his stance, his family literally disowned him! He is a pastor today who still boldly follows Jesus! Jesus in Matthew 10:34-36 said; "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's enemies will be the members of his household." Wow! Those are pretty inflammatory words by Jesus. I find that many who follow Him don't know this verse or simply ignore it hoping it will never be brought up. My friend, following Jesus means taking bold stands that will cause others, even brothers and sisters in the Lord to ridicule, mock, and turn on you. If we are concerned with what people think of us, we will never do anything bold for God! The enemy's strategy is to play on our pride in order to keep us from taking 'foolish' bold steps for God! Then again, the foolishness of the cross is the power of God!

Scott

Breaking Free

Part 1

By Scott Myers

Why is it that so many believers find it practically impossible to live the spiritual life and walk in the freedom Christ gives? Let me ask that in a different way. Why do we Christians simply find it hard to really live the Christian life? What I find even in my own life is that even though we love Jesus, want to truly live a life committed to Him, we simply fail and many times fail miserably! What’s up with that? Why can’t we just get this thing together? I mean, God saved us and gave us ‘new’ life, gave us His Holy Spirit to live in us, and gave us the power to live this ‘new’ life, yet it just doesn’t happen. What? Hasn’t it been said over and over again by preachers, pastors, Sunday School teachers, evangelist and even those who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that Christians are ‘supposed’ to live like Christians? If a person has truly trusted Jesus Christ and he has truly been born again and he has truly been saved then he will certainly live like a Christian and possess an overcoming life, right? WRONG! Wrong a million times! Sure, Christians ‘should’ live like they are Christian, but that does not imply, nor does Scripture imply or directly say that it is automatic. Even though many hold to this falsehood and proclaim it adamantly, Scripture just does not say that.

OK then, where does that leave the multitudes of Christians when it comes to really experiencing and living the life we have been given by God? How are we to really ‘break free’ and express this ‘new’ life and experience an overcoming life? If Jesus meant what He said in John 10:10, that He came to give us life and to give it to us abundantly, then surely it is possible to experience this life, isn’t it? Of course it is! The answer lies within the pages of Scripture. Let’s examine some scripture and glean some very important truths concerning this very vital, but very basic topic.

Scripture divides man in to different parts in order to distinguish not only who he is but also how he expresses himself. Scripture in one place talks of man being tripartite (three parts) while in another place it divides man into 2 parts. Let’s look at the latter first and learn the distinction and in doing so gain some transformational truth that will equip us with everything we need to break free and live life to the fullest and live as overcomers.

The Inward Man and The Outward Man

In Romans 7:22 the Apostle Paul says; “for I delight in the law of God according to the inward man” and then in Ephesians 3:16 he speaks of being “strengthened with the power by His Spirit in the inner man”. In 2 Corinthians 4:16 Paul tells us; “but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day”.

The fact is that when a person is saved, God, in the person of the Holy Spirit enters into man’s spirit. It is at the moment of a person’s faith in Christ God supernaturally brings man’s dead spirit to life as He takes up residence inside of man’s spirit bringing spiritual life and salvation – one in the same. The spirit of man is the very core of man and is what Scripture refers to as the ‘inner man’. It is this place, the spirit of man, that the Spirit of God resides and fellowships with man and man with God. This inner man died when Adam and Eve sinned against God the first time and is what comes to life when man exercises faith in Jesus Christ for the first time. It is man's spirit.

If the spirit of man is the core of who he is and represents the inner man, then just what is the outer man? The outer man, as Paul referred to as decaying deals NOT with his physical body, but instead with man’s soul. The soul, ‘Psuche’ in the Greek refers to man’s thinking (judgment, how he thinks), his emotions, and his volition (will). All of these are that which is in a fallen state. Man’s judgment, emotions, and volition (man’s will) stand in direct contrast to God’s will. The spirit is housed within the soul while the soul of man is housed within the body. The tripartite nature of man speaks of his spirit, his soul, and his body. It deals with him having a spirit, being a soul, and living in a body. Our subject at hand deals with the first two – the spirit and the soul; the inner man and the outer man.

Therefore the inner man is where God resides and fellowships with man while the soul is how man expresses himself. It must be understood then that if we are to ‘break free’ and experience real life, that abundant life, then our inner man must break free. It is in this breaking free that we find the ability to live life as we should – free in the Spirit. In other words, our inner man, our spirit mingled with the Holy Spirit must be set free if we ever expect to live that life! That means that it has to break through something. It then becomes obvious then that our inner man must break through the outer man. The inner man is housed or ‘shelled’ in the outer while the outer is housed in the body. The inward man must be released and this is where the difficulty lies. Many followers of Jesus Christ find themselves wanting to live that abundant life Jesus spoke of, but simply cannot do it. The willing and the wanting to are there, but the actually doing is not to be found. This is because the ‘inner man’, his spirit wants to but cannot break forth and live. It is hindered from breaking out and being set free. God desires that our inward man break forth and be released, but it’s not easy. Let’s look at a passage in John.

Jesus gives us a great analogy in John 12:24. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.“ Can you see the principle here? This illustration sets a foundational truth concerning believers breaking free and living the life God intends for us to live. When a grain falls into the earth and dies it brings forth ‘new life’. The grain must die and dry up and burst open in order for the life that is inside the grain to come out. If the grain does not crack open, the life will never come forth. Notice that the grain must die. The grain is the shell of the wheat and it must die and crack open in order that the wheat come forth. Life is on the inside and must find its way to the outside if it is to live and bear fruit. This illustrates exactly what must take place with believers.

Notice what Jesus said in the very next verse. “He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.” At face value, it would seem that Jesus changes the subject or at least take a different direction, but in reality He explains his previous statement. The word Jesus uses for ‘life’ is that Greek word again ‘psuche’ (soo-kay) which we get the word ‘psychology’. The word itself that means ‘soul’ or as here is translated as ‘life’ actually refers to the life we live. Remembering that it involves three parts; the intellect (how we think), our emotions (how we feel), and our volition (what we choose to do, i.e. our will). Verse 25 could also be translated as’ “He who loves his soul loses it, and he who hates his soul in this world will keep it to life eternal.” Remembering that life = soul = how we think, how we feel, and what we choose to do.

It then becomes obvious that first of all that Jesus is not referring to spiritual salvation for that comes about through faith in Jesus. This passage deals with verities other than eternal salvation, something beyond the spiritual salvation moment. When a person is saved, he is saved for eternity and does not have to worry about keeping it (saving/preserving it) to 'life eternal'. He has it and it is secure. The reference to 'keeping it or saving it to life eternal' refers to obtaining and keeping an overcoming life that will somehow have an impact in eternity. When we hate our life and deny our own ‘thinking, emotions, and volition' now in this life, the inward man will emerge and live an abundant, overcoming 'God' life AND we shall get something later for doing such. Notice Jesus said that he who hates his soul/life now. Hating one's life is equivalent to 'denying oneself, taking up his cross, and following Jesus'. Giving up one's own life now is sowing it to God and the keeping it to eternal life thus means giving up something now and getting something yet future. Denying one's life is work. It's hard work and it takes effort. Sowing is work! Whatever a man sows, he shall reap. Spiritual salvation is a gift that cannot be worked for, so that means the life that is kept to life eternal is something else. Gifts cannot be earned, rewards must be earned. The reaping must deal with God rewarding a person in the future for giving up his life now. The spiritual life, the abundant life, that inner life, the life of the inward man and the reward of such a life is what is in view here, not eternal life.

What we find among those who possess the life of God (i.e. who are saved), many simply do not bear it! In other words, not all who have God’s salvation experience it. Among those who possess the life of the Lord are either in one of two distinct conditions: imprisoned and unable to break free or set free and expressing life!

Now back to the great illustration. Just as the grain must die and break in order for the wheat to break forth and bear fruit, so must the outer man die and break in order for the inner man to break forth and bear fruit. Our souls must die in order for our spirits to emerge and release life!

The question then is not how to obtain life, but rather how to get that life to come forth! There must be a breaking forth and we must find just how that is to take place!

Twisted Love

Ask 10 people what real love is and most likely you will get 10 different answers. When it comes to honest to goodness displays of love one should simply be able to turn to our 'churches' and see. Right? Well one would think so, but that's not always the case. In fact one would have to look hard to find a loving church as defined by God's meaning of love. Love is a small word yet it huge in it's scope and it's application. Unfortunately many within our churches and in Christianity as a whole we have accepted a rather narrow definition of love. In the book So You Don’t Want to Go To Church Anymore by Jake Colsen (Wayne Jacobsen & Dave Coleman), he says;

“… our definitions of love get twisted when institutional priorities take over …. The problem with church as you know it, is that it has become nothing more than mutual accommodation of self-need. Everybody needs something out of it. Some need to lead. Some need to be led. Some want to teach, others are happy to be the audience. Rather than become an authentic demonstration of God’s life and love in the world, it ends up being a group of people who have to protect their turf.”

Very strong words about 'love' being twisted by the very group who are called to portray the love of God. But then again, maybe church 'folk' should only love those who agree with them, like the same color paint and carpet, like the same programs, look the same, dress the same, smell the same, and worship the same and they should reject, verbally assassinate, and look down upon those who do not. I mean surely God would never have me love someone who is not just like me and does not see life as I do. God would never ask me to really love a person, even if they are Christian, who cusses, drinks, or is divorced would He? And what about those who vote different than I do or choose to live out their lives differently than I do. That would be sin, right!? WRONG, WRONG, WRONG! Those examples may sound absurd, but it is happening all the time in our churches! One would have to be blind not to see it! Spiritually blinded that is!

The truth of the matter is that we have been called to love all people. For many in our churches love has become nothing more than showing acceptance to those who 'agree' with us and rejecting those who do not. That is a 'twisted' view of God's love. Yes, God has called us to love ALL people, but NO, He has not called us to agree with all people. I find it amazing that couples, families, and even friends can have disagreements and even heated discussions (nice for arguments) and still LOVE each other. When this takes place in the institution we call 'the church' love is tossed aside or at the least, twisted. How many arguments and dissentions have come about because a program was started, nixed, or changed? How many Christians have allowed hatred to come into their hearts all because music in a worship service stepped up and became relevant and contemporary? How many 'church' goers have allowed resentment to take over because they were not reconized for teaching or giving? On and on it goes. I simply say WHAT!!!!???  It is a sad fact that buildings, denominations, programs, and worship styles have become the focus of what it means to be 'Christian'.  This has led many to feel obligated to protect their 'turf' all at the cost of love. Programs, denominations, style, buildings, hymn books, and computers will all pass - souls shall live forever. We do not need to agree with everyone, BUT we need to love ALL people God's Way, not some twisted way!

The Destruction of God’s People

As I have studied Scripture and observed the people in whom Scripture deals with, I feel the need to write on the subject of the ‘Destruction of God’s People’. It is of prime importance that we understand truth apart from fiction. Truth frees and liberates while fiction puffs up and hinders freedom and can actually destroy God’s people. The fact of the matter is that in the time we live in, it would seem that so many Christians who claim to be such are in spiritual, emotional, and intellectual bondage today. It’s no wonder that the ‘church’ has so many problems; it’s filled with believers who are spiritually bound.

Notice in 1st Thessalonians 2:18; “For we wanted to come to you -- I, Paul, more than once -- and yet Satan hindered us.”  That word ‘hindered’ means to strike against, to ‘loudly’ come up against.” Paul described Satan as a maker of malicious racket; one who seeks to noisily strike against believers! Why would he want to do this, one might ask. Of course he wants to harm all believers, but that’s not the scope of all he seeks to do. Satan’s ultimate goal is to halt any forward movement of the Work of God - specifically in the area of understanding and fulfilling the Word of God He knows that any forward movement for God is a move against him! Satan desires to draw us away from God in order that he can poison minds and cause division among the people of God! Disregard of the Word of God goes back to the garden. Remember that Satan tricked Eve into disregarding God’s Word! Satan’s greatest blow to us today is to hinder us from truly knowing and living God’s Word! Paul’s desire was to go and teach the Thessalonians the Word of God, but Satan noisily and maliciously fought against him! It is the same today, when Satan sees God moving in the lives of a group of believers in such a way that those same believers are set on fire by God through His Word, Satan rises up and does all he can to avert their attention away from what God is doing and what He hopes to do! I feel the main way Satan does this is by enlisting backslidden and immature Christians to make his noise! Those believers who are carnal minded, focused on selfish and worldly things. Those who for lack of maturity and lack of submission to the Lord are enlisted by Satan himself to derail any and all moves of God. These ‘racket makers’ are simply pawns in the hands of Satan! Unknowingly enlisted pawns, but enlisted pawns indeed! Remember when Peter rebuked the Lord? Jesus looked at Peter and said; “Get behind me Satan!” Here is the Apostle Peter, in a weak moment, a carnal moment that unknowingly was pulled into Satan’s web of deceit! Peter became a ‘pawn’ in the very hands of Satan to thwart what God was doing in the life of Jesus. Now just think about that for a moment. If even Peter can be deceived and enlisted, we all are vulnerable! The fact remains that in a moment of carnality Satan enlisted Peter to ‘mouth off’ to the Lord! He used Peter to attack and hinder the Lord! Be not fooled, believers in Christ can and actually do become pawns of Satan! Satan is the author of unruly and idle chatter, complaining and confusion, backbiting and tale bearing. God certainly is not! Now please understand that there is absolutely nothing wrong with disagreeing. My wife disagrees with me more than anyone on the planet, but I love her and she loves me. We can disagree without getting personal and can do so without running the other down in public. It would be wrong in so many ways for me to get out in public and run my wife down by saying ugly things about her. By doing so, I would be harming her and also harming myself. It would be counter productive for a healthy marriage and our marriage could be destroyed by such hateful behavior. It’s the same in the body of Christ.

The body of Christ is a family and when Satan enlists believers, destruction will assuredly take place. The first and most important thing that will be destroyed will be relationships. Satan will use jealousy, bitterness, and even misunderstandings to destroy close, intimate, and deep relationships. God’s greatest desire for His family is that we be intimate with each other building strong bonds within the family of God seeking to grow closer to each other and ultimately to God. Satan seeks to destroy that and keep it from happening. By infiltrating the hearts of carnal and immature believers, Satan launches an attack against the people God and actually hinders a move of God. When Satan is successful, God is not the One who loses, we are! Jesus said in John 13:35; “they shall know you are My disciples by the love you have for one another”. We are not called to agree with each other; we are called to love one another.